1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to audio/video systems within a home and associated media delivery and listening/viewing rights management.
2. Related Art
Media presentation devices (media players) typically include a video display and a corresponding sound system. Examples of media presentation devices include televisions, computers, pocket televisions, cell phones, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), projectors, PSPs (Portable Play Stations), digital watches, and audio systems. Media presentation devices typically receive media content from media sources such as cable Set-Top-Box (STBs), satellite STBs, Digital Video Disk (DVD) players, Personal Video Recorders (PVRs), computers, and wireless broadcast television receivers, among other sources. These media sources provide media programs to the media presentation devices for presentation to a consumer.
The pre-recorded or live media programs (i.e., video programs, audio-video programs and audio programs) are usually copyright protected. Either being unaware of the copyrights of the multimedia program providers or deliberately abusing the copyrights, many consumers engage in the unauthorized copying, distributing, and/or viewing of the copyright protected media programs. Such illegal use of the media programs causes the copyright owners of the media programs to not receive royalties for such use.
In a point to point digital rights management situation, a single device makes a media presentation request, and, in response, licensing, billing and other rights management are processed directly. When encryption is employed for digital rights management, often the encryption is not end-to-end in point-to-point media management systems. Once the media program is decrypted, theft and unauthorized distribution is a discreet possibility.
In a situation where there are multiple media presentation devices, within a single home environment for example, it becomes necessary to download media programs multiple times, each with a media format suited for that particular device with digital rights management operations performed for each viewing. Thus, a need exists for improvements in the protection of media programs to prevent the unauthorized use, copying and distribution of the media programs.